Buildings account for about two-thirds of New York City greenhouse gas emissions—an astonishing figure that highlights the importance of upgrading buildings to make them part of the green energy transition.

At NYCEEC (NYCEEC), our mission is to deliver financing solutions and advance markets for energy efficiency and clean energy in communities. As a green bank focused on community lending, NYCEEC is proud to have the financial support of The Rockefeller Foundation to tackle the challenge of reducing emissions from New York’s existing buildings.

NYCEEC loans address gaps in the commercial finance market, providing capital to projects that might be too small, too complex, or use newer, less tested technologies.

Our financing supports a range of technologies, including passive house projects (where materials and design elements reduce energy use), zero net energy buildings (where on-site energy production, usually from rooftop solar, exceeds demand annually), and building electrification (where all energy used is electricity produced on-site or delivered through the grid).

NYCEEC also finances technologies that bring broader benefits to the grid, such as demand management investments (where energy use is reduced automatically in response to grid needs), energy storage (to help match energy supply and demand), and electric vehicle charging infrastructure (to support tenants or provide tenant revenues by charging non-tenant vehicles).

Meeting Short- and Long-Term Aims

New York State has set a near-term goal requiring 70 percent of the state’s electricity to come from renewables by 2030. By financing the installation of these measures in existing buildings, we not only enable greenhouse gas reductions, but also prepare these buildings for this transition.

While NYCEEC finances the broad deployment of green technologies, it focuses primarily on buildings supporting low-income and disadvantaged communities.

Our measures typically increase tenant well-being by giving them more control over heating and cooling, improved indoor air quality, and enhanced building safety through reducing combustion sources.

Read the full article about making building climate friendly by Curtis Probst, Marian Weber, and Megan Rosa at Rockefeller Foundation.